Getting Better
"Getting Better" is a song written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon, based on an original idea by McCartney.[2] It was recorded by The Beatles for the 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
| "Getting Better" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Song by The Beatles | ||||
| from Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" | ||||
| Released | 1 June 1967 | |||
| Recorded | 9 March 1967 | |||
| Genre | Psychedelic rock[1] | |||
| Length | 2:47 | |||
| Label | Parlophone, Capitol, EMI | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Lennon/McCartney | |||
| Producer(s) | George Martin | |||
| Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band track listing | ||||
| ||||
Lennon on the roof
One of the recording sessions for "Getting Better" is famous for an incident involving Lennon. During the 21 March 1967 session in which producer George Martin added a piano solo, Lennon complained that he did not feel well and could not focus.[3][4] He had accidentally taken LSD when he meant to take an upper.[5] Unaware of the mistake, Martin took him up to the roof of Abbey Road Studio for some fresh air, and returned to Studio Two where McCartney and Harrison were waiting. They knew why Lennon was not well, and upon hearing where Lennon was, rushed to the roof to retrieve him and prevent a possible accident.[4][6][7]
Personnel
- Paul McCartney – double-tracked vocal, bass
- John Lennon – backing vocal, lead guitar
- George Harrison – backing vocals, lead guitar, tambura
- Ringo Starr – drums, congas
- George Martin – piano, pianette
- Personnel per Ian MacDonald[8]
Notes
- ↑ Pollack 1995.
- ↑ Miles 1997, pp. 312–313.
- ↑ Spitz 2005, pp. 670–671.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Lewisohn 1988, p. 104.
- ↑ Miles 1997, p. 382.
- ↑ The Beatles 2000, p. 242.
- ↑ Emerick 2006, p. 172–173.
- ↑ MacDonald 2005, p. 241.
Other websites
- The Beatles (2000). The Beatles Anthology. San Francisco: Chronicle Books. ISBN 0-8118-2684-8.
- Emerick, Geoff; Massey, Howard (2006). Here, There and Everywhere: My Life Recording the Music of the Beatles. New York: Penguin Books. ISBN 1-592-40179-1.
- Lewisohn, Mark (1988). The Beatles Recording Sessions. New York: Harmony Books. ISBN 0-517-57066-1.
- MacDonald, Ian (2005). Revolution in the Head: The Beatles' Records and the Sixties (Second Revised ed.). London: Pimlico (Rand). ISBN 1-844-13828-3.
- Miles, Barry (1997). Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now. New York: Henry Holt & Company. ISBN 0-8050-5249-6.
- Pollack, Alan W. (31 December 1995). "Notes on "Getting Better"". "Notes on" Series.
- Sheff, David (2000). All We Are Saying: The Last Major Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono. New York: St. Martin's Press. ISBN 0-312-25464-4.
- Spitz, Bob (2005). The Beatles: The Biography. Boston: Little, Brown. ISBN 0-316-80352-9.
- Unterberger, Richie (2009). "Review of "Getting Better"". AllMusic. Retrieved 9 December 2009.